A recent study by a University of Missouri researcher shows that resveratrol, a compound found in grape skins and red wine, can make certain tumor cells more susceptible to radiation treatment. This research, which studied melanoma cells, follows a previous MU study that found similar results in the treatment of prostate cancer. The next step is for researchers to develop a successful method to deliver the compound to tumor sites and potentially treat many types of cancers.
"Our study investigated how resveratrol and radiotherapy inhibit the survival of melanoma cells," said Michael Nicholl, MD, assistant professor of surgery at the MU School of Medicine and surgical oncologist at Ellis Fischel Cancer Center in Columbia, Mo. "This work expands upon our previous success with resveratrol and radiation in prostate cancer. Because of difficulties involved in delivery of adequate amounts of resveratrol to melanoma tumors, the compound is probably not an effective treatment for advanced melanoma at this time."
The study found that melanoma cells become more susceptible to radiation if they were treated first with resveratrol. The MU researcher found that when the cancer was treated with resveratrol alone, 44 percent of the tumor cells were killed. When the cancer cells were treated with a combination of both resveratrol and radiation, 65 percent of the tumor cells died.
Nicholl said his findings could lead to more research into the cancer-fighting benefits of the naturally occurring compound.
"We've seen glimmers of possibilities, and it seems that resveratrol could potentially be very important in treating a variety of cancers," Nicholl said. "It comes down to how to administer the resveratrol. If we can develop a successful way to deliver the compound to tumor sites, resveratrol could potentially be used to treat many types of cancers. Melanoma is very tricky due to the nature of how the cancer cells travel throughout the body, but we envision resveratrol could be combined with radiation to treat symptomatic metastatic tumors, which can develop in the brain or bone."
As more people look for ways to stay younger for longer, the supplement industry has moved beyond creams and cosmetic fixes to something more ambitious: products that claim to slow aging by acting on cellular processes.
Nicotinamide mononucleotide ("NMN" and "β-NMN"
Among the most heavily marketed compounds are NAD+, NMN and resveratrol, often described as supporting cellular repair, energy production and healthy aging. But what do they actually do, where are they being used, and how strong is the evidence?
To make sense of the claims, it helps to separate three things: the molecule NAD+, the compounds sold to raise it, and the products, such as supplements, creams and serums, that contain them.
Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, or NAD+, is a coenzyme found in all living cells. A coenzyme is a helper molecule that allows enzymes to carry out chemical reactions in the body. NAD+ plays an essential role in energy metabolism, DNA repair, inflammation and the activity of a family of proteins involved in cellular stress responses.
NAD+ levels tend to decline with age, although this decline is complex and may vary between tissues. Lower NAD+ availability has been linked to reduced mitochondrial function, meaning reduced activity in the cell structures that help produce energy. This is one of the biological changes associated with aging.
NAD+ in creams and serums
NAD+ has begun appearing in skincare creams and serums, but the evidence is even less developed here than it is for supplements.
While NAD+ is important for skin-cell energy and repair, it remains unclear whether topical NAD+ in ordinary creams can penetrate the skin in sufficient amounts to produce meaningful anti-aging effects.
Better-established ingredients, such as sunscreen, retinoids and niacinamide, currently have much stronger evidence for improving visible signs of skin aging.
NAD+ precursors as supplements
Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD)
Because NAD+ itself is not thought to be absorbed efficiently when swallowed, much research has focused on NAD+ precursors. Precursors are compounds the body can convert into another substance. In this case, they are compounds the body can convert into NAD+. Two of the best known are nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN) and nicotinamide riboside (NR).
In animal studies, NAD+ precursors have produced promising results. Older mice given these compounds have shown improvements in energy metabolism, insulin sensitivity and aspects of physical function. Some studies have also reported improvements in healthspan and lifespan-related measures in animal models, although these findings vary by model and do not translate neatly into humans. These results have helped drive enormous commercial interest, but turning promising mouse studies into meaningful benefits for people has proved far harder.
Human clinical trials suggest that NMN and NR can raise NAD+ levels, or related markers of NAD+ activity, in blood and tissues. However, the strongest evidence is for changes in blood, while evidence for meaningful effects in specific tissues is still limited.
Some small studies have reported possible benefits for metabolic health, including insulin sensitivity in specific groups. Others have explored potential effects on muscle mass, but recent reviews have not found convincing evidence that NMN or NR preserve muscle mass or function in older adults.
When researchers look at outcomes that matter more directly to everyday aging, such as strength, cognition, frailty or biological age, the picture is much less clear. Biological age is a contested estimate of how old the body appears at a cellular or molecular level. One major problem is that aging unfolds over a long period, while most supplement trials last only weeks or months.
Resveratrol
Resveratrol is another compound often promoted for anti-aging, but it is different from NMN and NR. It is not an NAD+ precursor. It belongs to a group of natural plant chemicals called polyphenols and is found in red grapes, berries and peanuts.
In laboratory and animal studies, resveratrol has been associated with lower levels of inflammation and improved mitochondrial function, meaning better activity in the parts of cells that help produce energy.
The difficulty is that resveratrol has poor oral bioavailability. This means much of what is swallowed is broken down or modified before it can reach tissues in the form and concentration used in laboratory experiments. This creates a large gap between what resveratrol can do in cells in a dish and what a supplement is likely to do in the human body. So far, human trials have not shown convincing evidence that resveratrol slows aging, and findings on cardiovascular and anti-inflammatory benefits remain mixed.
Resveratrol may interact with some medications, especially anticoagulant and antiplatelet drugs, often described as blood-thinning medicines. High doses can also cause side effects such as gastrointestinal symptoms. Anyone taking regular medication, managing a chronic condition, pregnant or breastfeeding should seek medical advice before taking high-dose supplements.
So, are NAD+, NMN and resveratrol the elixir of youth? No. The key distinction is between biological plausibility and proven benefit. These compounds are not biologically implausible: they act on real pathways involved in energy production, stress responses and cellular maintenance. But affecting a pathway is not the same as slowing aging in a person.
In humans, the evidence so far suggests possible benefits in limited contexts, but major questions remain about long-term safety, optimum doses and who is most likely to benefit. The science is plausible, but the marketing often turns "this affects a process associated with aging" into "this supplement will keep you young."
For now, the best-supported ways to support healthy aging remain far less glamorous: regular exercise, good sleep, a balanced diet, avoiding smoking, limiting alcohol and managing long-term health conditions. Supplements may eventually prove useful, but at present, the evidence for staying younger for longer is much stronger for everyday habits than for anti-aging products.
A compound found in common foods such as red grapes and peanuts may help prevent age-related decline in memory, according to new research published by a faculty member in the Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine.
Ashok K. Shetty, Ph.D., a professor in the Department of Molecular and Cellular Medicine and Director of Neurosciences at the Institute for Regenerative Medicine, has been studying the potential benefit of resveratrol, an antioxidant that is found in the skin of red grapes, as well as in red wine, peanuts and some berries.
Resveratrol has been widely touted for its potential to prevent heart disease, but Shetty and a team that includes other researchers from the health science center believe it also has positive effects on the hippocampus, an area of the brain that is critical to functions such as memory, learning and mood.
Because both humans and animals show a decline in cognitive capacity after middle age, the findings may have implications for treating memory loss in the elderly. Resveratrol may even be able to help people afflicted with severe neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer's disease.
In a study published online Jan. 28 in Scientific Reports, Shetty and his research team members reported that treatment with resveratrol had apparent benefits in terms of learning, memory and mood function in aged rats.
"The results of the study were striking," Shetty said. "They indicated that for the control rats who did not receive resveratrol, spatial learning ability was largely maintained but ability to make new spatial memories significantly declined between 22 and 25 months. By contrast, both spatial learning and memory improved in the resveratrol-treated rats."
Shetty said neurogenesis (the growth and development of neurons) approximately doubled in the rats given resveratrol compared to the control rats. The resveratrol-treated rats also had significantly improved microvasculature, indicating improved blood flow, and had a lower level of chronic inflammation in the hippocampus.
"The study provides novel evidence that resveratrol treatment in late middle age can help improve memory and mood function in old age," Shetty said.
Resveratrol is a naturally occurring polyphenolic phytochemical produced in several plants, especially grapes skin and seeds. One epidemiological study reported a positive association between moderate red wine consumption and a low incidence of cardiovascular disease, known as the "French Paradox." The neuroprotective effects of resveratrol for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease (AD) have been investigated in various in vitro and in vivo models of AD. Despite the high bioactivity of resveratrol in AD, there is poor bioavailability of resveratrol, that is, the concentrations required producing favourable biological effects in the brain and neuronal cells are insufficient to demonstrate efficacy in humans. Therefore, successful clinical application of resveratrol as a single 'take home' oral therapy alone presents a major challenge for the treatment of AD.
We propose herein a novel combination therapy consisting of an agent for chelating redox-active metals (Fe2+) and/or an antioxidant to reduce damage caused by residual oxygen free radicals, in addition to resveratrol, a modulator of AMPK and sirtuin pathways (nuclear transcription). The addition of resveratrol may have the capacity to increase activity of the NAD+- dependant deacetylases such as sirtuin family enzymes (e.g. SIRT1) and promote improved DNA repair by enhancing PARP enzyme activity through increased production of their essential substrate NAD+, and thus improve cell viability and longevity. A synergistic combination of a selected antioxidant substances, Fe2+ chelating agents and resveratrol may be expected to provide a more clinically successful treatment.
Researchers at Georgetown University and 25 other U.S. academic institutions affiliated with the Alzheimer's Disease Cooperative Study will be conducting a phase II double-blinded, placebo-controlled trial that will test the effects of resveratrol in Alzheimer's disease patients. "This is the gold-standard for conducting a clinical study because it allows us to objectively determine if resveratrol is offering any benefits," stated Brigid Reynolds, NP, who is the lead researcher for the study's center at Georgetown.
The twelve-month trial, funded by the National Institute on Aging, will enroll men and women age 50 and over with mild to moderate dementia diagnosed as probable Alzheimer's disease and will require one caregiver or friend for each patient. Participants will be initially assigned to 500 milligrams resveratrol or a placebo daily, with dosage to be increased at 13 week intervals to a maximum of 1,000 milligrams twice per day. Lumbar punctures, brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans, and blood and urine tests will monitor the subjects' progress over the course of ten visits. The researchers hope to determine whether supplementation with resveratrol is helpful in delaying or altering the deterioration of memory and daily function that occurs in Alzheimer's disease.
"Most resveratrol studies showing any health benefits have been conducted in animal models, such as mice, and with doses that far exceed intake from sipping wine or nibbling on chocolate," stated R. Scott Turner, MD, PhD, who is the director of Georgetown University Medical Center's Memory Disorders Program and the national study's lead investigator. "With this clinical trial, we'll find out if daily doses of pure resveratrol can delay or alter memory deterioration and daily functioning in people with mild to moderate dementia due to Alzheimer's."
"During this study, we will also test whether resveratrol improves glucose and insulin metabolism in older individuals -- although those who already have diabetes will not be included in this study," he added....
We know that, Resveratrol (found in the skin of red grapes and is a constituent of red wine, see structure)(trans-resveratrol) is a phytoalexin produced naturally by several plants when under attack by pathogens such as bacteria or fungi. And also it has been reported to possess diverse activities such as, anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, blood-sugar-lowering and other beneficial cardiovascular effects in mouse and rat models of testings. In the only positive human trial, extremely high doses (3–5 g) of resveratrol in a proprietary formulation have been necessary to significantly lower blood sugar.Claims of anti-aging effects of the same compounds is to be still established.
Now researchers led by Rensselaer Professor Peter M. Tessier, have come up with an interesting finding i.e., resveratrol - has the ability to neutralize the toxic effects of proteins linked to Alzheimer's disease.
As per the claims by the researchers, resveratrol picks out the clumps of peptides that are bad and leaves alone the ones that are benign, it helps us to think about the structural differences between the peptide isoforms (different packing arrangements of a particular peptide) Deformations of a particular peptide the Aβ1-42 peptide, have been linked to Alzheimer's disease.
Improperly folded peptides have been shown to collect in accumulations called "plaques (often found near areas of cell death in diseased brain)" within the brain.
Researchers conclude that, though it is not clear that resveratrol is able to cross the blood-brain barrier. However, the molecule has garnered interest in recent years for its potential impact on cancer and aging...
A natural substance present in red wine, resveratrol, inhibits the formation of inflammatory factors that trigger cardiovascular diseases. This has been established by a research team at the Department of Pharmacology of the University Medical Center of Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz (JGU) working in collaboration with researchers of the Friedrich Schiller University in Jena and the University of Vienna. Their results have recently been published in the scientific journal Nucleic Acids Research.
Despite the fact that they eat more fatty foods, the French tend to less frequently develop cardiac diseases than Germans. This so-called French Paradox is attributed to the higher consumption of red wine in France and it has already been the subject of various studies in the past. A number of research projects have actually demonstrated that the natural product resveratrol, present in red wine, has a protective effect against cardiovascular diseases. But what exactly is the reason for this? It seems that at least part of the protective effect can be explained by the fact that resveratrol inhibits the formation of inflammatory factors, a conclusion reached by the research team of Junior Professor Andrea Pautz and Professor Hartmut Kleinert of the Mainz University Medical Center following collaboration in a joint project with Professor Oliver Werz of the Friedrich Schiller University in Jena and Professor Verena Dirsch of the University of Vienna. In fact, the researchers discovered that the natural substance binds to the regulator protein KSRP and activates it. KSRP reduces the stability of messenger RNA (mRNA) in connection with a number of inflammatory mediators and thus inhibits their synthesis.
A new study finds that combining the current medications for Alzheimer’s disease with small molecules derived from micronutrients found in grapes, berries, peanuts and turmeric is a safer and more effective way to treat the disease.
Individuals with Alzheimer’s have a buildup of toxic amyloid proteins in the brain. Researchers from the School of Pharmacy at the University of Waterloo combined amyloid-destroying small molecules with anti-amyloid antibodies that are already used in Alzheimer’s treatment. They found that it neutralized the clumping of proteins that accumulate in the brain, leading to better outcomes.
Alzheimer’s is the major cause of dementia. Dementia affects nearly 750,000 people in Canada, with a million cases expected by 2030. Alzheimer’s has no cure and current medications only relieve a patient’s symptoms. Anti-amyloid antibody therapies on their own can slow the disease, but they also come with risks that can be fatal, including brain swelling and bleeding.
“We already know the small molecules resveratrol or curcumin, which are found in some common foods, block the buildup of amyloid,” said Dr. Praveen Nekkar Rao, a professor in the School of Pharmacy at Waterloo. “What’s new and exciting is our combination of these molecules with the anti-amyloid antibodies. This approach could allow clinicians to use lower doses of antibodies, potentially reducing the risk of serious treatment-related side effects.”
Since there are few effective treatments for Alzheimer’s, researchers at Waterloo studied whether using two treatments together could work better than using just one. They chose resveratrol and curcumin because they are natural compounds known to reduce amyloid buildup and inflammation.
curcumin
Resveratrol
“I was inspired by chemotherapy, which involves taking multiple medications for effective treatment,” Nekkar Rao said. “Alzheimer’s is a complex disease, but there are very few combination therapy approaches. Our results show that the way forward is definitely combination therapy.”
The researchers emphasize that the study does not suggest that people should start consuming resveratrol or curcumin to prevent or treat dementia. You would have to consume an unsafe amount in order to reach the brain. The next phase of the research will focus on designing next-generation drugs that can reach the brain more effectively, interact favourably with amyloids and pair seamlessly with antibody treatments.
"Our study suggests that a natural compound like resveratrol, which can be obtained either through dietary supplementation or diet itself, could actually decrease some of the motor deficiencies that are seen in our aging population," said Jane E. Cavanaugh, Ph.D., leader of the research team. "And that would, therefore, increase an aging person's quality of life and decrease their risk of hospitalization due to slips and falls."
A new study has found that combining the current medications for Alzheimer's disease with small molecules derived from micronutrients found in grapes, berries, peanuts and turmeric is a safer and more effective way to treat the disease. The work is published in the journal ACS Chemical Neuroscience.
Individuals with Alzheimer's have a buildup of toxic amyloid proteins in the brain. Researchers from the School of Pharmacy at the University of Waterloo combined amyloid-destroying small molecules with anti-amyloid antibodies that are already used in Alzheimer's treatment. They found that it neutralized the clumping of proteins that accumulate in the brain, leading to better outcomes.
Alzheimer's is the major cause of dementia. Dementia affects nearly 750,000 people in Canada, with a million cases expected by 2030. Alzheimer's has no cure and current medications only relieve a patient's symptoms. Anti-amyloid antibody therapies on their own can slow the disease, but they also come with risks that can be fatal, including brain swelling and bleeding.
"We already know the small molecules resveratrol or curcumin, which are found in some common foods, block the buildup of amyloid," said Dr. Praveen Nekkar Rao, a professor in the School of Pharmacy at Waterloo. "What's new and exciting is our combination of these molecules with the anti-amyloid antibodies. This approach could allow clinicians to use lower doses of antibodies, potentially reducing the risk of serious treatment-related side effects."
Since there are few effective treatments for Alzheimer's, researchers at Waterloo studied whether using two treatments together could work better than using just one. They chose resveratrol and curcumin because they are natural compounds known to reduce amyloid buildup and inflammation.
"I was inspired by chemotherapy, which involves taking multiple medications for effective treatment," Nekkar Rao said. "Alzheimer's is a complex disease, but there are very few combination therapy approaches. Our results show that the way forward is definitely combination therapy."
The researchers emphasize that the study does not suggest that people should start consuming resveratrol or curcumin to prevent or treat dementia. You would have to consume an unsafe amount in order to reach the brain. The next phase of the research will focus on designing next-generation drugs that can reach the brain more effectively, interact favorably with amyloids and pair seamlessly with antibody treatments.
We know that, Resveratrol, a compound found commonly in grape skins and red wine, has been shown to have several beneficial effects on human health, including cardiovascular health and stroke prevention. Now, a University of Missouri researcher has discovered that the compound can make prostate tumor cells more susceptible to radiation treatment, increasing the chances of a full recovery from all types of prostate cancer, including aggressive tumors.
A compound found in red wine, grapes and other fruits, and similar in structure to resveratrol, is able to block cellular processes that allow fat cells to develop, opening a door to a potential method to control obesity, according to a Purdue University study.
While similar in structure to resveratrol -- the compound found in red wine, grapes and peanuts that is thought to combat cancer, heart disease and neurodegenerative diseases -- piceatannol might be an important weapon against obesity. Resveratrol is converted to piceatannol in humans after consumption.
"Piceatannol (see structure) actually alters the timing of gene expressions, gene functions and insulin action during adipogenesis, the process in which early stage fat cells become mature fat cells," Kim said. "In the presence of piceatannol, you can see delay or complete inhibition of adipogenesis."
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, approximately 12,000 women in the United States are diagnosed with cervical cancer each year. One of the most common treatments for cervical cancer is radiation. While radiation therapy destroys cancer cells, it also destroys nearby healthy cells. University of Missouri School of Medicine researchers studied in vitro human cancer cells to show that combining blueberry extract with radiation can increase the treatment's effectiveness.
"Radiation therapy uses high-energy X-rays and other particles such as gamma rays to destroy cancer cells," said Yujiang Fang, M.D., Ph.D., a visiting professor at the MU School of Medicine and lead author of the study. "For some cancers, such as late-stage cervical cancer, radiation is a good treatment option. However, collateral damage to healthy cells always occurs. Based on previous research, we studied blueberry extract to verify it could be used as a radiosensitizer."
Radiosensitizers are non-toxic chemicals that make cancer cells more responsive to radiation therapy. In a previous study, Fang and his research team showed that resveratrol, a compound in red grapes, could be used as a radiosensitizer for treating prostate cancer. Blueberries also contain resveratrol.
"In addition to resveratrol, blueberries also contain flavonoids," said Fang, who also has appointments as an academic pathologist and assistant professor of microbiology and immunology at Des Moines University in Iowa. "Flavonoids are chemicals that may have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties."
The researchers used human cervical cancer cell lines to mimic clinical treatment. The cell lines were divided into four groups that included a control group, a group that received only radiation, a group that received only blueberry extract, and a group that received both radiation and the extract.
"Our team used three different measures to confirm results of the study," Fang said. "Radiation decreased cancer cells by approximately 20 percent. Interestingly, the cell group that received only blueberry extract had a 25 percent decrease in cancer. However, the biggest decline in cancer cells occurred in the radiation and extract group, with a decrease of about 70 percent."
Fang explained that the mechanism that makes blueberry extract a radiosensitizer also reduces the abnormal explosion of cell growth? which is what cancer is.
"Cancer cells avoid death by remodeling themselves," Fang said. "Along with reducing cell proliferation, the extract also 'tricks' cancer cells into dying. So it inhibits the birth and promotes the death of cancer cells."
Fang said an animal study is the next step to confirm that his team can achieve the same results.
"Blueberries are very common and found all over the world," Fang said. "They are readily accessible and inexpensive. As a natural treatment option for boosting the effectiveness of existing therapies, I feel they would be enthusiastically accepted."
We have seen many benefits of natural products rich in Quercetin, Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) and many other polyphenol antioxidant from natural products like green tea, broccoli peaches and plums. Interestingly, now researchers from Columbia University have come up with an interesting finding, i.e., ProstaCaid is a 33-ingredient comprehensive polyherbal preparation with supplements of vitamin C, vitamin D3, zinc, selenium, quercitin, 3,3′-diinodolymethane (DIM), and lycopene was able to stop abnormal cell growth and induce apoptosis (programmed cell death) in both hormone sensitive and hormone resistant prostate cancer cell lines at unusually low concentrations, which makes the findings more significant...
Herbal extracts include the extracts from turmeric root, saw palmetto berry, grape skin, pomegranate, pumpkin seed, pygeum bark, sarsaparilla root, green tea, and Japanese knotweed. Hence, it is rich in natural polyphenols, including quercetin, resveratrol, epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), and ellagic acid, which have previously demonstrated anticancer potential. The unique formula contains 3 medicinal mushrooms grown on an herbal-enhanced medium. The mushrooms included are Phellinus linteus, Ganoderma lucidum, and Coriolus versicolor, each with known anticancer properties.
Researchers claim that, ProstaCaid was designed based on constituents that exhibit antiprolifetaive, antioxidant, and apoptotic activities; however, its efficacy and the mechanisms of action are yet to be examined. Researchers looked at the effectiveness of the preparation in suppressing several types of prostate cancer cell lines in culture and attempt to delineate the mechanism of action for justification in pursuing animal to determine efficicacy invivo.
Researchers conclude that, the anticancer activity of ProstaCaid may be ascribed to its polyphenolic flavonoids and curcuminoids derived from various herbs as well as other supplements, such as DIM. The preparation contains supplements such as quercetin (15%), Curcuma longa root extract complex with enhanced bioavailability (BCM-95; 20%), DIM (3%), and resveratrol (0.2%). Some of these components have shown a strong doseand time-dependent growth inhibition and apoptotic death in prostate cancer cells; 25 mM of quercetin inhibited about 50% PC3 cell growth for 72 hours. At 24 hours, 50 mM and 100 mM quercetin induced G2/M arrest and apoptosis, manifested by the decrease in G2/M-related protiens.
Researchers summarise that, ProstaCaid has anti-cancer activities in both AD and AI prostate cancer cells at very low concentrations (25 mg/mL). It also suggests that ProstaCaid inhibits cell growth and survival, at least through the inhibition of AKT and MAPK signaling. The effect on AI cell lines is especially of importance as there is presently no curative therapy for hormone refractory prostate cancer.
Researchers postulate that ProstaCaid may affect activity of Cdc2/cyclin B1 kinase by reducing this complex formation. Cdc2 could be dephosphorylated by Cdc25C and become inactive or be phosphorylated by protein kinase, such as Wee1, and then converted into an inactive form. They also suggest that more studies are needed in the future to test it and to define its upstream events in PC3 cells.
We know that blueberry has many chemicals such as anthocyanins, proanthocyanidins, resveratrol, flavonols and tannins and how blueberry inhibit mechanisms of cancer cell development and inflammation in vitro. Similar to red grape, some blueberry species contain in their skins significant levels of resveratrol a phytochemical.
Now research team led by Ming-Liang Cheng, MD, from Department of Infectious Diseases, Guiyang Medical College, Guiyang, have found that blueberries could reduce liver indices, serum levels of hyaluronic acid and alanine aminotransferase, and increase levels of superoxide dismutase and decrease levels of malondialdehyde in liver homogenates compared with the model group. Meanwhile, the stage of hepatic fibrosis was significantly weakened. Blueberries increased the activity of glutathione-S-transferase in liver homogenates and the expression of Nrf2 and Nqo1 compared with the normal group, but there was no significant difference compared with the model group.
The authors suggest that blueberry consumption is beneficial for hepatic diseases (including fibrosis)....
I read an article in the same lines, where in the researchers from Miyazaki prefecture of southern Japan and University of Miyazaki, screened nearly 300 different agricultural products for potential compounds that suppress HCV replication and uncovered a strong candidate in the leaves of rabbit-eye blueberry (native to the southeastern US). They purified the compound and identified it as proanthocyandin (a polyphenol similar to the beneficial chemicals found in grapes and wine). While proanthocyandin can be harmful, Kataoka and colleagues noted its effective concentration against HCV was 100 times less than the toxic threshold. The researchers are hoping to explore the detailed mechanisms of how this chemical stops HCV replication....
A recent
research reveals a potent effect for garlic against the
bacteria Campylobacter jejuni, a leading cause of intestinal illness
caused by eating undercooked poultry or foods that have been contaminated
during poultry preparation. "Campylobacter is simply the most common
bacterial cause of food-borne illness in the United
States and probably the world," explained coauthor
Michael Konkel of WashingtonStateUniversity's
College of Veterinary Medicine.
The researchers
compared the effects of diallyl sulfide (see structure), a
compound that occurs in garlic, and the antibiotics ciprofloxacin and
erythromycin on biofilms formed by Campylobacter jejuni. Biofilms are
colonies of bacteria protected by a film that renders them a thousand times more
resistant to antibiotics than free cells. Cell death following the
administration of diallyl sulfide occurred at a concentration of resveratrol
that was 100-fold less than that which was effective for either antibiotic, and
often took less time to work. The team found that diallyl sulfide combined with
a sulfur-containing enzyme, which altered the cells' function and metabolism.
Researchers
conclude that, diallyl sulphide elicits strong antimicrobial activity against
planktonic and sessile C. jejuni and may have applications for
reducing the prevalence of this microbe in foods, biofilm reduction and,
potentially, as an alternative chemotherapeutic agent for multidrug-resistant
bacterial strains.
Purdue University
researchers have come up with the
ability of a compound known as piceatannol (see structure) to help prevent the formation of
mature fat cells by blocking the pathways needed for their growth. Piceatannol
is an analog of resveratrol, found in grapes and other fruit, which is
converted to piceatannol in humans following its consumption.
Purdue assistant
professor of food science Kee-Hong Kim and his associates tested piceatannol in
cultured preadipocytes, which are immature fat cells. These cells pass through
several stages before reaching maturity over a ten day or longer period.
"These precursor cells, even though they have not accumulated lipids, have
the potential to become fat cells," Dr Kim explained. "We consider
that adipogenesis is an important molecular target to delay or prevent fat cell
accumulation and, hopefully, body fat mass gain."
Dr Kim's team found
that piceatannol bound to the preadipocytes' insulin receptors during their
initial stage of fat cell formation, which blocked insulin's ability to control
cell cycles and activate genes necessary for the further stages of
adipogenesis. "Piceatannol actually alters the timing of gene expressions,
gene functions and insulin action during adipogenesis, the process in which
early stage fat cells become mature fat cells," Dr Kim stated. "In
the presence of piceatannol, you can see delay or complete inhibition of
adipogenesis."
"Our study
reveals an antiadipogenic function of piceatannol and highlights insulin
receptor and its downstream insulin signaling as novel targets for piceatannol
in the early phase of adipogenesis," the authors conclude.
Dr Kim hopes to test
piceatannol in an animal model as well as find a way to prevent the compound
from degrading so that enough is available to the body to prevent fat gain.
"We need to work on improving the stability and solubility of piceatannol
to create a biological effect," he added.
